Reviews for Leverageland #2
Here are some more reviews done for leverageland. Keep in mind that the opinions are my own.
The Bank Shot Job
★★★★☆
As “The Bank Shot Job” begins, Nate and the team are tying up loose ends on a lengthy con to bring down the corrupt Judge Roy. The team’s plans for a smooth getaway are complicated when Nate, Sophie, and the Roy find themselves caught in the middle of a bank robbery. With their teammates trapped inside, Eliot, Hardison, and Parker scramble to find a way to rescue them.
The team soon learns that there is more to the bank robbers than meets the eye. It turns out they are a father and son desperately trying to scrape together enough money to save their wife/mother. The team decides that the best way to resolve the situation is to help the bank robbers get what they need.
The episode is entertaining on a variety of levels. Hardison and Parker steal the show as they masquerade as FBI agents. As usual, Hardison performance is way over-the-top and provides some of the show’s funniest moments. The impressive (and inventive) list of demands he gives to the local police is a hoot.
Parker and Eliot both work their professional magic-Parker robbing a bank while it’s being robbed and Eliot taking down a carload of meth dealers. Eliot had easy pickings in his fight with the drug dealers, but that didn’t make the fight any less impressive.
In the end, the team not only rescues Nate and Sophie, they also save a missing woman, bring down a ring of meth dealers, frame Judge Roy, get the father and son out of the bank safely, and still walk away with a pile of money for their original client. Pretty impressive for a band of thieves.
Overall, this is a fun, entertaining episode with lots of great moments.
Favorite Quote:
“Now look, they have a list of demands. First off they want twelve large pizzas, one cheese, one Hawaiian extra pineapple, two pepperoni black olives, two meat lovers. Seriously? Nobody's writing this down? Seriously?”
The Lost Heir Job
★★★★☆
In “The Lost Heir Job,” the team takes on Peter Blanchard, a greedy lawyer who is trying to cheat their client out of her inheritance. The client, Ruth Walton, tells Nate that billionaire Bennett Kimball planned to leave his estate to her non-profit charity. In order to get the money that rightfully belongs to Ruth, the team must convince Blanchard that Kimball has a biological daughter with a claim to his fortune.
The episode serves as a great introduction to Tara, a grifter that Sophie sent to fill in during her absence. Tara starts off by making the team believe that she’s Ruth Walton’s attorney and by insisting upon shadowing them during the job. At the end of the episode, she reveals true identity to a stunned and not-too-happy Leverage team. Jeri Ryan is a blast as both the proper, law-abiding Tara Carlisle and the brusque, self-assured Tara Cole. She turned out to be a great addition to the stable of recurring characters.
Sophie’s presence-or the lack thereof-is still felt by Nate, Eliot, Hardison, and Parker. Parker’s concern that Sophie might not return served as a reminder that this band of thieves has become a family. Despite the gap left by Sophie, there are some great character moments throughout the episode. Nate’s turn as the lawyer Jimmy Papadakolous was fun to watch, as was the basement confrontation between Eliot, Parker, and the police.
Overall, it’s a well-crafted episode and a solid introduction for the team’s newest member.
Favorite Quote:
“You do not let Vicki Vale into the batcave ever.”
The Double-Blind Job
★★☆☆☆
In “The Double-Blind Job,” the Leverage team works to take down Darren Hoffman, the ambitious CEO of Pallagen Laboratories. The team discovers that Hoffman planning to release a drug called HT1 to the general public in his bid to make Pallagen billions of dollars and advance his own career. Three years earlier, HT1 had resulted the deaths of several people who participated in a drug trial. Aware that far more deaths will follow if the drug is released, Nate and the crew race to get their hands on proof that Hoffman’s drug and the deadly HT1 are one and the same.
While the episode has some good moments, it’s one of the weaker episodes of the season. One problematic element of the episode is Parker’s sudden spurt of jealously over Hardison’s rapport with the team’s client, Ashley. Parker’s reaction to Ashley seems contrived and at times, it distracts from the meat of the episode. She spends much of her screen time glaring angrily in Ashley’s general direction.
The episode does have its strengths. For example, we see Nate cross the line of good sense when he prods Parker to stay in a situation where she might get caught. Still later, he rolls the dice with his own life by knowingly walking into a set-up. Sophie confronts Nate, reminding him that he is now a thief, just like her, and she can and will call him out for his reckless behavior.
Overall, the episode felt off in comparison to the rest of the season. It wasn’t a terrible episode, but neither was it a standout.
Favorite Quote
“You alright, Eliot? You need a minute to shake it off?”
The Bank Shot Job
★★★★☆
As “The Bank Shot Job” begins, Nate and the team are tying up loose ends on a lengthy con to bring down the corrupt Judge Roy. The team’s plans for a smooth getaway are complicated when Nate, Sophie, and the Roy find themselves caught in the middle of a bank robbery. With their teammates trapped inside, Eliot, Hardison, and Parker scramble to find a way to rescue them.
The team soon learns that there is more to the bank robbers than meets the eye. It turns out they are a father and son desperately trying to scrape together enough money to save their wife/mother. The team decides that the best way to resolve the situation is to help the bank robbers get what they need.
The episode is entertaining on a variety of levels. Hardison and Parker steal the show as they masquerade as FBI agents. As usual, Hardison performance is way over-the-top and provides some of the show’s funniest moments. The impressive (and inventive) list of demands he gives to the local police is a hoot.
Parker and Eliot both work their professional magic-Parker robbing a bank while it’s being robbed and Eliot taking down a carload of meth dealers. Eliot had easy pickings in his fight with the drug dealers, but that didn’t make the fight any less impressive.
In the end, the team not only rescues Nate and Sophie, they also save a missing woman, bring down a ring of meth dealers, frame Judge Roy, get the father and son out of the bank safely, and still walk away with a pile of money for their original client. Pretty impressive for a band of thieves.
Overall, this is a fun, entertaining episode with lots of great moments.
Favorite Quote:
“Now look, they have a list of demands. First off they want twelve large pizzas, one cheese, one Hawaiian extra pineapple, two pepperoni black olives, two meat lovers. Seriously? Nobody's writing this down? Seriously?”
The Lost Heir Job
★★★★☆
In “The Lost Heir Job,” the team takes on Peter Blanchard, a greedy lawyer who is trying to cheat their client out of her inheritance. The client, Ruth Walton, tells Nate that billionaire Bennett Kimball planned to leave his estate to her non-profit charity. In order to get the money that rightfully belongs to Ruth, the team must convince Blanchard that Kimball has a biological daughter with a claim to his fortune.
The episode serves as a great introduction to Tara, a grifter that Sophie sent to fill in during her absence. Tara starts off by making the team believe that she’s Ruth Walton’s attorney and by insisting upon shadowing them during the job. At the end of the episode, she reveals true identity to a stunned and not-too-happy Leverage team. Jeri Ryan is a blast as both the proper, law-abiding Tara Carlisle and the brusque, self-assured Tara Cole. She turned out to be a great addition to the stable of recurring characters.
Sophie’s presence-or the lack thereof-is still felt by Nate, Eliot, Hardison, and Parker. Parker’s concern that Sophie might not return served as a reminder that this band of thieves has become a family. Despite the gap left by Sophie, there are some great character moments throughout the episode. Nate’s turn as the lawyer Jimmy Papadakolous was fun to watch, as was the basement confrontation between Eliot, Parker, and the police.
Overall, it’s a well-crafted episode and a solid introduction for the team’s newest member.
Favorite Quote:
“You do not let Vicki Vale into the batcave ever.”
The Double-Blind Job
★★☆☆☆
In “The Double-Blind Job,” the Leverage team works to take down Darren Hoffman, the ambitious CEO of Pallagen Laboratories. The team discovers that Hoffman planning to release a drug called HT1 to the general public in his bid to make Pallagen billions of dollars and advance his own career. Three years earlier, HT1 had resulted the deaths of several people who participated in a drug trial. Aware that far more deaths will follow if the drug is released, Nate and the crew race to get their hands on proof that Hoffman’s drug and the deadly HT1 are one and the same.
While the episode has some good moments, it’s one of the weaker episodes of the season. One problematic element of the episode is Parker’s sudden spurt of jealously over Hardison’s rapport with the team’s client, Ashley. Parker’s reaction to Ashley seems contrived and at times, it distracts from the meat of the episode. She spends much of her screen time glaring angrily in Ashley’s general direction.
The episode does have its strengths. For example, we see Nate cross the line of good sense when he prods Parker to stay in a situation where she might get caught. Still later, he rolls the dice with his own life by knowingly walking into a set-up. Sophie confronts Nate, reminding him that he is now a thief, just like her, and she can and will call him out for his reckless behavior.
Overall, the episode felt off in comparison to the rest of the season. It wasn’t a terrible episode, but neither was it a standout.
Favorite Quote
“You alright, Eliot? You need a minute to shake it off?”